Sealing means



Oct. 18, 1938. REITZES 2,133,716

SEALING MEANS Original Filed March 24, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Herbert Louis Rettzes.

ATTORNEY.

Oct. 18, 1938. H. 1.. REITZES 1 SEALING MEANS Original Filed March 24, 1954 s Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

' Herbert Louis Reitzes,

BY %wf ATTORNEY.

Oct. 18, 1938 H. L. REITZES SEAL ING MEANS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed March 24, 1934 INVENTOR. Herber f Louis Rel T266 A TTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 18, 1938 Application March 24, 1934, Serial No. 717,201 Renewed December 9, 1937 4 Claims.

The object of the invention is to provide improvements in means for sealing containers broadly considered, but more especially in the sealing of bags and the like formed of such materials as sheet cellulose derivative and similar compositions, coated with a protective covering.

As is well known, sheet cellulose derivative, as representative of a certain class of products, is a. cellulose composition, usually formed in very thin sheets and is practically transparent, but is not in all cases impervious to and unaffected by moisture. so that in practice it is necessary to coat sheets of it upon both sides with substan-- tially equally transparent waterproofing mate.- rials, such as certain varnishes or shellacs formed of gumsancl resins. Both the sheet cellulose derivative and the coatings can be softened by acetone, but aside from the costliness of acetone, it is exceedingly inflammable, tends to over soften, and even dissolve the sheet cellulose derivative as well as the coating, and also involves delay in drying and hardening.

Another object therefore is to provide a simple mechanism for softening the said coatings, so that they readily cohere with each other upon adjacent sheet cellulose derivative layers, without affecting the sheet cellulose derivative itself and without involving any delay incidental to cohesion, since the softening of the adjacent coatings is due to heat instead of chemical action, and the bulk of the material is relatively so small, that the cooling and resulting effective scaling is instantaneous to all intents and purposes.

A further object is to provide a condition of sealing which for all practical purposes is permanent, to the extent of holding as long as may be required for any given case, but which permits ready separation of the sheet cellulose derivative layers, whenever such may be desired as for instance when it is desired to open a bag or the like, which has been previously sealed by this improved method, or to unite two or more compartments of such bag or the like into a single compartment, when the original separation is the result of making intermediate portions of the walls of the bag or the like cohere by the im-] proved method.

Still another object is to provide an improved device for carrying out the method above referred to, and which is of such simple construction as to be relatively inexpensive to produce, and unlikely to become disarranged, broken, or otherwise inoperative, said device comprising essentially a stand, a platen, elec- (Cl. 9H)

trically energized means to heat said platen, means to compress layers of sheet cellulose derivative 101' similar material against said platen, and means to conveniently actuate said lastnamed means, preferably in additionto means to indicate the temperature, and also, if desired, to automatically regulate the temperature of the said platen.

With the objects of the invention thus broadly stated, said invention comprises further details of construction and operation, such as are hereinafter fully brought out in the following description, when read in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a machine comprising one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical, substantially central, frontto-rear section of the same;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the same; a

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the creasing means with a plurality of layers of sheet cellulose derivative or similar material in operative relation therewith;

Fig. 5 is a left hand side elevation of the same;

Fig. 6 is a right hand elevation of the same;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary section thru the active sealing elements of the device when in operation; and

Fig. 8 is a plan view of a temperature indicating element.

Referring to the drawings, a stand is shown as comprising a substantially A-shaped base, having a transversely enlarged apex 2, to provide a support for a manually actuatable switch 3 and pilot light 4; divergent legs 5 and 6, connected together by means of a transversely extending rib l; and a plate 8, extending from said rib to said apex portion providing a base for a preferably hollow post 9, which with the reinforcing ribs I0 is integral with the integrally connected apex, leg, rib and plate portions of said base.

Said post is provided with an upwardly extending bore ll, thru which slidably extends a Vertically sliding rod l2, provided at its uppermost end with an angularly extending offset l3, and the vertical adjustment of which is maintained by a set screw H. To the free terminal portion of said angular extension I3 is detachably secured, by means of a bolt l5 or the like, a hollow casing l6, comprising top and bottom walls I! and I8, and a forwardly positioned wall 19, said last-named wall is of relatively greater thickness and is positioned to retain a relatively large quantity of heat received thereby from an as electric heating unit 23, the energizing of which unit is under the manual control of the switch 3 thru the duplex wire 2|. Leading from a suitable source of electric current (not shown) is a second duplex wire or cable 22, extending between said switch and said unit, thru an interposed thermostatic control element 23 of any well known type, adjustment of which thermostat to operate at various desired temperatures being controlled by the rotatable rod 24, which extends thru the lower wall [8 of said casing l6.

The forward surface of the casing wall is thus provides a normally heated platen 25, against which two or more layers 26 of sheet cellulose derivative or the like are adapted to be pressed, said layers comprising the folded end portion of a bag or similar container 21 for articles 28. The pressure and in fact the compression of said layers against said platen is adapted to be maintained as long as may be desired by means of a clamping bar 29, which comprises the free edge portion of a frame 36, which in turn is pivotally mounted by means of a suitable hinge 3| upon the upper forward edge portlon of the casing wall l9. Said frame is normally maintained in freely extended position by means of a spring 32, extending between an upwardly projecting portion 33 of said frame and means 34 by which the opposite end portion of said spring is attached to a rearward portion of said top casing wall I1, and to which last-named wall is preferably unitarily secured any suitable form of thermostat or equivalent temperature-indicating element 35. The upward position of the folded layers 26 of said-container 21 is adapted to be limited by a gauge or stop 36 adjustably secured by any suitable means 31 to the casing wall l9.

In order to manually actuate the clamping bar 29 with respect to the platen 25, preferably both of the opposite ends of said bar are connected thru springs 38 to adjustably positioned connecting means 39 upon radius rods 40, which extend upwardly from collars 4| surrounding spaced portions of a transversely extending shaft 42, which is oscillatably supported in spaced posts 43, extending upwardly from and as integral extensions of the base i in substantial alignment with the rib 1, said shaft terminating in one direction in an angularly extending terminal portion 44, from which extends a link connection to a pedal or other suitable actuating means 46, so positioned as to be readily accessible to the foot (or other portion of the body) of the operator, since usually one or both of the operators hands are employed to hold the container 2'! in position for effecting the sealing of the folded closure portion 26 of said container.

Also as an adjunct to the principal portion of the device, is a creasing attachment, which comprises an angular bar 41, one end 48 of which is provided with a bore 49, thru which extends the upper portion of the vertically adjustable rod l2, said bar being adjustable upon and with respect to said rod by means of a bolt 50, and the opposite or free end portion of said rod being transversely enlarged at 5! to provide surfaces 62, between which and the adjacent surface 52 of the yieldingly positioned member 54, the folded end portions of a bag or other container may be creased when drawn, as for instance in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 4, said last-named member 54 being secured to, and in proper rela tion with the enlarged end portion II of said bar by means of one or more pins 56, at least one of which is surrounded by a coil spring 56, for yield ingly positioning said member 64 in normally binding relation against the surface 42, said relationship being obviously adjustable by altering the tension upon the spring or springs 64 with the adjustment of the positioning pin or pins 6|.

In the operation of this device, the electric current is turned on by means of the switch 3 and with the proper setting of the attachment 24, the thermostat control 23 maintains the temperature of the platen surface 26 within the proper temperature range, to eifect softening of the coating upon the adjacent surfaces of the layers of sheet cellulose derivative, temporarily pressed against said platen 26 by the bar 29 under a force applied to the pedal 46, as h :einbefore described, and after said folded portion 26 of said container has been previously creased by drawing the same thru the creasing attachment, also hereinbefore described. The bar 29 need only be pressed downward momentarily, after which the pedal is released and said bar is withdrawn automatically from said platen surface, thus releasing said container, the folded closure portion of which upon instantaneously cooling becomes as instantly sealed against accidental separation, and consequent opening of the adjacent end portion of the container. On the other hand, while this sealing is positive until disturbed, the sealed layers may be readily separated, without having to be torn or otherwise mutilated upon pulling them apart,

but instead by merely terminating the. cohesion existing between adjacent layers of surfacing material with which the sheet cellulose derivative or the like is coated.

In referring hereinbefore to the sealing of a container, or the folded or otherwise assembled layers of a bag or the like, it is to be understood that such reference is merely representative of many uses to which the device can be put. For instance, as illustrative of another of the many such uses, either before or after securing the end closure portion of 'a bag or the like, an intermediate portion of the side walls of such container may be sealed together, in order to provide two or more separate compartments in the same container, in this case such intermediate sealing being separable for the purpose of uniting two or more of such compartments into one, by merely pulling lengthwise or in other suitable direction, upon the container, with various materials in the corresponding compartments, in order to separate the sealed wall sections and thereby permit the union of the various materials, after initially having maintained them in relative isolation.

I am aware that the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and I therefore desire the present embodiment to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being had to the appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate the scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. The combination of a base, a member carried by and angularly adjustable with respect to said base in a horizontal plane, a normally heated platen mounted upon said member and adjustable angularly in a substantially vertical plane, a creasing element also mounted upon said member and adjustable in a horizontal plane, said element being operative to limit the movement of said first member in one direction with respect to said base,- and normally projecting freely above and in spaced relation with said platen, means to compress layers of a cellulose derivative against said platen, and means to. actuate said last-named means.

2. A device of'the character described, comprising a heated platen, oscillatable compression means mounted on said platen, resilient means extending between said platen and said oscillatable means, to normally maintain said platen and said oscillatable means in spaced angular relation, manually actuated means movable against the tension of said resilient means to compress said oscillatable means against said platen, and yielding take-up means connecting said manually actuated means to said oscillatable means.

3. A device of the character described, comprising a heated platen, an oscillatable compression member mounted for alinement with said platen, a resilient member connected to said compression member for normallymaintaining said compression member spaced from said platen, actuating means movable against the tension of said resilient member for compressing said compression member against said platen, and a yielding take-up means between said actuating means and said compression member.

4. A device of the character described, comprising a heated platen, an oscillatable compression member mounted for alinement with said platen, a resilient member connected to said compression member for normally maintaining said compression member spaced from said platen, actuating means movable against the tension of said resilient member for compressing Gil said compression member against said platen, and

' HERBERT IDUIS 

